Rutgers announces multiple changes of leadership

Several University institutes and academic units are undergoing leadership changes, announced Rutgers—New Brunswick Chancellor-Provost Francine Conway in two emails sent yesterday to the Rutgers community.

Jonathan Potter, current dean of the School of Communication and Information, will step down from his position on June 30 to focus on his research as a distinguished professor, according to the latest email. He was first appointed as dean in 2015 and was reappointed in 2020 to serve for an additional five years prior to this decision.

“Dean Potter and I will work together to ensure a smooth transition, including the selection of an interim dean whose service will begin July 1,” Conway said. “A national search will be conducted to appoint Dean Potter’s eventual successor.”

The Zimmerli Art Museum will see a change of directors on Feb. 15, with Maura Reilly, associate professor of art history and museum studies at Arizona State University, succeeding the museum’s interim director Donna Gustafson, according to the second email. Gustafson assumed the role in 2020 following the death of the previous director Thomas Sokolowski.

James A. Knowles, a well-known human geneticist and psychiatrist, will join the School of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Genetics as a distinguished professor and the Rutgers University Human Genetics Institute of New Jersey (HGINJ) as director starting this spring. He will succeed the current director Jay Tischfield, who has occupied the position for the past 18 years.

Robert Kopp, former director of the Rutgers Institute of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences (EOAS), has been succeeded today on an interim basis by Julia Lockwood, a professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources, according to the email. Kopp previously assumed the role in 2017 and now serves as director of the Megalopolitan Coastal Transformation Hub.

Lastly, Emily Chan, dean of the faculty at Colorado College, joined the Office of the Chancellor-Provost last month as part of a spring semester ACE Fellowship to help address current academic issues at the University, according to the email.

“I remain deeply grateful to Jay Tischfield, Robert Kopp and Donna Gustafson for their outstanding leadership as, respectively, director of HGINJ, director of EOAS and interim director of the Zimmerli Museum,” Conway said. “Please join me in thanking them for their dedication and hard work, which have greatly served the public good and strengthened our university.”